Puzzle Pieces
by Turquisea
Summary: It was a complete puzzle. Neither side of it made any sense. He didn't want to believe that Corinne was lying...but at the same time he found it in believable that Philippe was going to try and murder him. He decided that some puzzle pieces needed time before they fit into their place… every piece would eventually, except his heart…


_**"Yes there's a chance that I've fallen quite hard over you…"**_

_Louis tried hard not to let his smile widen, but it did. There was just.._something _special about that girl… but he didn't even know her name. Maybe it was that she enjoyed seeing France from the clouds, maybe it was because he actually managed to get the contraption to work? He didn't know._

_They must've hit a mild turbulence, he guessed; because that caused them to accidentally lurch to the center of the balloon, and almost face-to-face. He had to admit though, the reddish hue on her cheeks just showed him how sparkling a blue her eyes were._

_"Uhh…" She started, quickly taking a few steps back. _

_Louis shook his head slightly, "I know, the thing's got a mind of it's own."_

_The blond seemed to smile slightly at his sense of humor. And he knew what he was going to ask, but a strange, but pleasant feeling over swept him in his heart. Something it must've been. "So, to whom do I owe my thanks?" He asked._

_"Corinne, your Highness." She curtsied. Corinne, he knew that he was never going to get her name out of his mind. It fit her perfectly. Like the last piece of a puzzle, but he knew his puzzle was far from being solved._

_"Since you saved my life," He started, and it got her curiosity working. "Why don't you call me Louis?" He watched as a spark reached her cerulean eyes. And a smile graced her lips. He knew her beauty wasn't going to escape his mind soon enough. ' I think that possibly, maybe I'm falling for you…'  
><em>

**Louis tried to** get the memory to stop bothering him. It was useless now. He'd set her mad, he didn't mean to, it was an accident. He was hoping to catch up to her the other day… only to see her get fired when she was trying to tell him something, he saw her -and her friends- be threatened to be thrown in the dungeon if they kept on spreading their lies on Philippe trying to over-throw him.

He knew Corinne would never lie about something as serious as that. But at the same time, he didn't believe tha the man he looked up to would murder him. He was at wits end, no side of the puzzle made any sense. _' All of the while, I never knew, just how much that I've fallen for you. '_

_He couldn't believe what he saw, a guard was holding the girl's hands behind her back and she was arguing with Treville, pleading him to believe her. That's when she noticed him, when he walked over to where the commotion was taking place. "What's going on?" He asked. "What happened?" He didn't ask the captain, but the captured girl. That's when he noticed that her eyes were troubled and lost._

_"Your highness." The captain bowed slightly. "The girl and her friends," He pointed to Corinne. " Are spreading lies that Philippe and his men are sneaking weapons to your masquerade ball in attempt to assassinate you."_

_He never felt more crushed or puzzled in his life. "Is this true, Corinne?" He asked low-spirited and dejectedly._

_She shook her head slowly. She looked like no one believed her. "Of course not…" She looked up at him with misery. "I would never lie to you!"_

_"Guards!" Philippe called, pointing to the exit. "Escort them from the premises!"_

_"Wait, I still don't understand." Louis said._

_"Now!"_

_"Please just believe me!" She got one of her hands free from the guard's grip- the same exact time Louis' hand reached out and their hands bumped slightly. He felt a spark._

Why a spark? He questioned himself. Why the happy feeling during the balloon ride? Why captivated by cerulean eyes? But most of all… why? Out of every girl in the world he could've fallen for without knowing, why did it have to be her?- Of course he didn't complain about his situation. Heavens no. It was just so… complicated. Nothing made sense. And the time he had to solve his puzzle was running dangerously low. _'You must choose a bride by the end of the ball- a day before your coronation because you cannot be crowned without at least a fiancée… it would be wise to start now- and the country girl isn't an option.' _He remembered so clearly what his advisors said, and truth be told, they didn't give that much advice. Why couldn't Corinne be an option? She was everything he imagined a gracious ruler to be : She was courageous and determined, she thought more about others than she thought about herself, she kept ahold of her dream no matter how childish others thought it was, she encouraged him even though his dream was more insane than hers, she didn't let anyone shape her life to be perfect… another thing he just couldn't help but adore about her.

She had flaws and she knew that, and didn't let anyone's insults and nagging get to her. She was just… he couldn't even explain. She wasn't afraid to dream big, it was her life. She was so… kind towards the other people- until they insult her dream that is, and that was from the personal experience of the Prince. She was sometimes calm… which helped… slightly. She wasn't afraid to speak her mind, all her words were pure honesty. She wasn't a puppet which had a fake, painted face that showed no emotion. She was her own person with her own emotions.

And last but not least… her temper, - he chuckled, leaning back in his chair, adreamy expression on his face as a smile slowly crept its way across his features- it was the cutest thing about her. Her cherry red face with her glare and lower lip almost pushed out in a pout with her fists clenched at her sides, he didn't find it humorous or anything… he found it the most adorable thing in existence.

Then the smile vanished completely from his face, along with the dreamy look- all replaced by a down-hearted look as he looked out his window, the clods were turning gray and blocking out the sun- a signal that it was about to rain was obvious. And it mirrored how he felt when the reminder came back to him.

_"Tell me, your royal shyness. How is it that a Prince can envision a man, flying in the air, but not a girl as a musketeer?" Corinne demanded, turning around to glare at him, but failed to. Her eyes gave him the only message he needed to know.1- She was completely crushed. 2- And it was because of him. She was depressed, hurt, angry… and confused._

_The brunette Prince wanted to punch himself, oh why in the name of Paris… of all things he could've said …he had to say that girls couldn't be musketeers? He saw the two men with the latter jobs on their horses race towards him, he didn't pay them any mind. Not even when one asked him if he was alright or had any injuries, he just continued to stare at the girl whom he'd crushed the heart of without even realizing it, he just watched crestfallen… why did he have to say what he said? Why?_

"Why?" He muttered to himself, leaning his elbows on his desk, dropping his head into his hands and gripping furiously at his bangs. Neither side of anything that was going on made sense. It felt like the puzzle pieces were scattered all around the most obvious places, and he was on a blind hunt and oblivious to the obvious.

There were too many puzzle pieces that would never fit into the picture it created…

…and his heart only happened to be one of them.

* * *

><p><strong>What happens to my fangirling brain when I listened to "Falling In Love At A Coffee Shop" By Landon Pigg- sure the name may sound weird, but don't judge a book by its cover.<strong>

**#guiltynotguilty for angst …**

**(T_T)**


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